A better way to approach fat loss

We’ve all been focusing on the wrong thing when it comes to fat loss.

It’s calories (Jooookkkessss). We know that much.

I’ve come to a realisation recently but I want to set the scene before I tell you what that is…

I talk to a lot of people who know what to do but they aren’t doing it. and if you don’t know what to do that part is an easy fix. It is rarely ever the problem.

Most people know that to lose weight you need to eat less and move more.. That advice isn’r particularly helpful. We over complicate fat loss because it’s way harder than it sounds.

Fat loss is simple, but it is not easy & many people get the two confused which is what I think leads to overcomplicating it.

So, really the question is how to we help people stick to the behaviours we know will result in fat loss & improved health?

& this is the question I don’t think we ask enough because we are too focused on the minutia - oh maybe your calorie target was 100 calories too high or low, you an extra 5g of protein … it maketh no difference whatsoever my friend.

The focus should be this…

Your mood.

I’ve been thinking about this for months and it pulls together observations from various things I’ve read, listened to, some journaling epiphanies, my own experience and observing my clients.

Your mood is fundamental to everything. It is the piece that ties it all together.

Nothing is particularly hard when you are in a good mood. Everything seems figure-out-able. You see things clearer. You have better perspective. You can more easily focus on the things within your control and let go of the things that aren’t, motivation is generally higher…

And life is just better.

Now, I know you can’t ALWAYS be in a good mood. That’s unrealistic. But you can set yourself up for being in a good mood the vast majority of the time.

You are not a victim to your mood - you have far more control over it than you think.

You can take ownership of your mood and take action to predispose yourself to spending more time in a good mood and changing a typical bad mood to a moderate mood. The aim is to bring up your average mood.

We are looking at averages here not trying to avoid inevitable ups and downs.. much like your calorie intake.

There is a concept in happiness research called baseline happiness. It shows that no matter what happens to us we come back to this pretty consistent baseline.

Even after big negatives like divorce or losing a loved one you still eventually return to the baseline. The same is true for winning the lottery or getting married… there is a peak in happiness and then you return to your average.

The interesting take home from this is that most people focus on the positive or negative events. The marriage or divorce and not on increasing the baseline which would actually have a far bigger impact.

It’s not the once in a life time trip that improves your happiness. It’s the things you do every day. It’s taking joy in the mundane, its choosing not to let daily inconveniences ruin your mood.

You don’t need a huge life changing event. You need small consistent change.

& although this research is on happiness I think it’s even more applicable to mood.

I realised recently that I am rarely ever in a bad mood. Sure, I am sometimes stressed. I run 6 businesses and I have a lot of people relying on me. I take that as a blessing and embrace that stress. I’ve worked hard to have that level of stress. I do’t see it as a negative.

So, either a) no bad things have happened to me in the last few years (remember bad is pretty subjective and if you practice acceptance, reframing and gratitude things are rarely that bad) and on a surface level quite a few ‘bad’ things have happened.

Or, b) I’ve got much better at significantly & consistently elevating my mood.

I concluded it’s most likely b) and I will add to this that through my observations of others there is no correlation between the people I know who are general neggy vibes (bad mood people) and how much bad stuff happens to them.

If anything I notice a correlation where people who have been through the worst things tend to be the most positive and are generally in a good mood. This is probably because they have perspective and choose not to let every day annoyances impact their mood.

Notice I said choose & that is because in order to increase your mood you need to make a conscious choice to.

If you want to increase your average mood and improve your life then you need to take action on it. It won’t happen without.

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These are the behaviours I feel contribute to this:

1. I exercise daily.
   
   And I do it for the immediate reward of how it makes me feel rather than the delayed reward that is much harder to see - health, building muscle, losing fat etc.
   

2. Diet quality:
   
   What you eat impacts your mood & in turn your mood impacts what you eat so you can see how this has a huge impact on weight loss.
   
   I took this from a paper on Understanding nutrition, depression and mental illnesses.
   
   ‘Few people are aware of the connection between nutrition and depression while they easily understand the connection between nutritional deficiencies and physical illness. Depression is more typically thought of as strictly biochemical-based or emotionally-rooted. On the contrary, nutrition can play a key role in the onset as well as severity and duration of depression.’
   
   So what is important?
   
   This would need to be an article in itself (and likely will be).
   
   but if we just look at one factor: Protein.
   
   Another study showed the proportion of protein intake is significantly associated with the prevalence of depression. These associations were more prominent in adults with insufficient protein intake. (important to add this second sentence as you can’t just eat more and more protein and get happier and happier - you saturate the benefit pretty quickly and then more is not better)
   
   The reason for this is likely due to amino acid deficiency. - Amino acids are the building blocks of protein. They are pretty important!
   
   Many of the neurotransmitters in the brain are made from amino acids.
   
   For example dopamine is made from tyrosine and serotonin is made from tryptophan.
   
   A deficiency in either is linked to low mood.
   

3. Energy balance.
   
   Keep calories in line with your energy needs - "Eat not to dullness; drink not to elevation." - Benjamin Franklin.
   
   Focus on fuelling yourself not restricting. Think: how can I fill my body with food I know is going to make me feel my best Vs how can I eat as little as possible and still just about survive.
   
   I don’t have time or space here to go into detail on diet and mood but…
   
   The Mediterranean diet has been linked to increased mood and reduced depression.
   
   Improving your diet in general will lead to better mood, more clarity and more energy.
   

4. Music - I highly recommend country music but I will (reluctantly) accept that everyone has their own taste.
   

5. Fresh air - Get out in the day light every day. I got rid of my car so there is no choice for me and also no road rage in my life.
   

6. Sleep - You simply cannot be in a good mood if you are tired all the time. ( Unless you reach the point of delusional which I am very good at. Especially when traveling but would not recommend for prolonged periods of time).
   

7. Time alone - Introvert vs extrovert needs may vary here. It may be more time with people you need.
   

8. Gratitude - I journal daily & it’s made me realise I really love my life. Most people don’t realise how good they have it because it’s the norm. This concept is known as hedonic adaptation - when things become the norm you stop appreciating them. E.g. you get a pay rise and you are buzzing for a few weeks and then you just get used to you’re new salary and it no longer brings you joy. Practicing gratitude will make you appreciate & enjoy what you have more. Get my journal here
   

9. Perspective - Will it matter in a week? A year? Can you control it? you need to focus your limited time, energy and resources on what you can control and let go of what you can’t. Do the best you can in the situation you are in.
   

10. Very rarely drink or take drugs - This has a huge impact on your mood. Especially if you are consuming things that impact your serotonin and dopamine levels. (ecstasy and cocaine)
    

11. Realising it’s a conscious choice - this is the biggest thing, your bad mood is really on you. It’s your responsibility, no one else’s and you have more control over it than you think. Also remember mood is contagious. What impact do you want to have on others?

And finally, you have to take it seriously. I can’t afford not to show up at my best nor do I ever want to. Which means I am pretty disciplined about the above. It’s no coincidence that I am rarely in a bad mood despite the stresses of trying to manage numerous businesses and keep 1,000s of clients happy and supported.

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To conclude:

We often focus on the wrong thing. If you focus on improving your mood. Everything else becomes a hell of a lot easier and more enjoyable.

& for anyone who is sick of trying to hate yourself into change this intent makes the whole process a hell of a lot more positive. Diet and exercise should make your life better not worse.

Here is the hard part… you will likely have to do the things you know will improve your mood ESPECIALLY when you are not motivated to. That is when they are even more important because that action drives motivation & increases mood. If you’re sitting waiting to feel like doing it you’re never going to get anywhere.

TLDR: Start with optimising mood & the rest is easy.

This is what makes the way we coach on commit to 6 different.

Sure, you get personalised targets but that’s not really what you need.. although you often don’t realise that until a few weeks in.

I’ve been thinking about this concept for a long time and I’ve never been able to articulate it (hopefully I have here to some extent).

The feedback we get from commit to 6 is largely mood based.

I feel so much better,
I am happier,
I have more energy,
My mood has increased,
I am a better person to be around,
I have a more positive impact on my friend, family, co workers.

Sure, people lose fat if that’s why they came but what is core to it all is the baseline increase in mood.

That is what has driven behaviour change and is what continues to drive it.

Being in a better mood is a superpower.

Here is how you achieve it.